Teacher at Sussex vo-tech charged with sexual contact

A teacher at the Sussex County Vocational School was arrested today for allegedly having sexual contact with a 17-year-old female student, Sparta police said.

Paul Stanziale, 51, of Sparta was arrested after an investigation that began Monday when school officials informed police about the alleged incident, authorities said.

Police Capt. Susan Parks said Stanziale was accused of "inappropriately touching" the girl on one instance at the Sparta school Additional details about the case were not released.

He was charged with criminal sexual contact, a fourth-degree crime punishable by up to 18 months in jail. He is scheduled to appear in Sparta municipal court on Feb. 11.

Stanziale, who earns about $72,000 annually, has been a teacher of agricultural occupations at the school for the past nine years. He previously taught at the Morris County Vocational-Technical in Denville.